Where We Worship
Church translates faith into life
By Zenaida Serrano Espanol
Advertiser Staff Writer
• Name of church: Olivet Baptist Church.
Photo courtesy of Olivet Baptist Church
• Our affiliation: Southern Baptist Convention, based in Nashville; Hawai'i Pacific Baptist Convention, based in Honolulu.
Pastor Steve Murphy of the Olivet Baptist Church in McCully baptizes church member Susan Fujii.
• Where we are: 1775 S. Beretania St., McCully.
• Our numbers: Average weekly service attendance of 400 members.
• Our pastor: Steve Murphy, senior pastor.
• What we believe (our mission statement): "We are followers of Jesus Christ united by His spirit for worship and service."
"At the heart of it is the belief that every person can have a personal and dynamic relationship with God and that's made possible through the work, the teaching and sacrifice of Jesus Christ," Murphy said.
"So we really promote very strongly: personal faith, personal interaction between the believer and God, and personal practice of the faith in a continuous manner."
• Our history: Olivet Baptist Church began as the nondenominational Mission Church, established in 1926 by Joseph and Mary Tyssowski, who came here from Texas. Members of the church first gathered in a home on the corner of Young and Artesian streets in Honolulu. Joseph Tyssowski died in 1935 and the church was then led by former Windward residents Alvin and Irene Oyer.
In 1940, Victor Koon became the new pastor. Koon and his wife were from Texas and came to Hawai'i after doing mission work in China. Koon led the church toward its affiliation with the Southern Baptist Convention in 1941. The church then became Olivet Baptist Church. The word "Olivet" is a biblical term, Murphy said, a reference to a holy mountain in the Bible.
The current property on South Beretania Street was purchased in 1944 and members temporarily gathered for worship in a Quonset hut until the current sanctuary was built in 1950.
• What we're excited about: Members are looking forward to the 75th anniversary celebration, themed "75 Years on Mission — a Legacy of Faithfulness." Events include a free concert at 7 p.m. Sept. 30 at the church, with reunion and current choirs, orchestras and quartets.
In addition, they are looking forward to a banquet at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 6 at the Japanese Cultural Center. Those interested in attending the banquet can call the church for more information.
There will also be a special anniversary worship service at 10:30 a.m. Oct. 7. The services will include participation by former pastors, testimony by members, hymns, praise songs and more, and another anniversary service at 7 p.m, which Murphy described as a more "contemporary" service geared toward youth.
The church will also present its annual Fall Fun Festival, 4 to 8 p.m. Oct. 27. The free event at the church, with games, prizes and food, started in 1996 as a safe alternative to Halloween.
• What's special about us: "We believe strongly in worship, in ministry and missions," Murphy said. "The heart of what it means to translate faith into life is the tangible expressions of love; so you care about people, you feed the hungry, (and) you relate to all people without any sense of discrimination."
The church has sent mission teams to Belarus, Australia and Kalaupapa, Moloka'i; members have also been invited to go to Tanzania in 2004. "This mission thing, living and expressing our faith and sharing our resources globally, is something I'm excited about," Murphy said.
Murphy is also pleased with their many ministries, such as their food pantry, which serves about 60 to 100 people per week. "Whatever we have, by way of resources or gifts or talents, we have it to share," he said.
One of the themes for 2002, Murphy said, is to be "an on-mission church in McCully." The church recently sent interns into the community to speak with social service workers and at schools, nursing homes and other churches to find out the needs in the area.
"So we're going to really try in the next three months to define some new ministries," Murphy said. Some possible ideas they're considering include plans to give free car washes for their neighbors, hold movie nights and provide volunteers to nearby schools.
The church also runs Olivet Baptist Church Preschool, which serves about 70 students and has been around since the 1940s.
• Contact: Call 946-6505, e-mail olivetbaptistchurch@prodigy.net or visit www.olivetbaptisthawaii.org
If you would like to recommend a church, temple or faith organization for a Where We Worship profile, e-mail faith@honoluluadvertiser.com, call 535-8174 or write: Where We Worship, Faith Page, The Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802.
